Supergirl: “Supergirl Lives”

Kyle’s Thoughts

Hi, guys. Long time, no talk.

Jim and I took our holiday break. We ate too much, and I’ve hoarded about 20-30 cartons of Southern Comfort Egg Nog. I know what you’re thinking, I’m sobering up, but Southern Comfort Egg Nog is non-alcoholic. Since it’s designed to have the liquor added to it, that egg nog is so thick and creamy. My mouth is watering; I may have just enough egg nog to white knuckle it to next holiday season. Enough about food and drink, let’s kick off the new year with a Supergirl write up.

“Supergirl Lives” had the usual highs and lows of a Supergirl episode (staying true to the character with some poor dialogue), but overall, it was an enjoyable 45 minutes. Kevin Smith directed this episode. I know a lot of comic book critics and fellow geeks are supposed to salivate over anything Kevin Smith—and I do enjoy plenty of his work (Clerks, Mallrats, Dogma, and Jay and Silent Bob)—but “Kevin Smith directed” isn’t a huge draw for me. To be fair, I try not to get starry eyed with any director.

Smith’s daughter Harley Quinn Smith also made an appearance, and she did a decent job as a damsel in distress prop. Wait. Isn’t Harley Quinn Smith supposed to be a baby or toddler? Is the Harley Quinn character over 20-years-old? Kevin Smith’s daughter is supposed to be the same age as my daughter. Wait. Season turned 19 today. Happy birthday, Season.

Okay. I’ll stay on track from now on. “Supergirl Lives” stays true to the Supergirl character. She’s the type of person who would run into a burning building (powers or not). That’s a welcome change from the DC cinematic universe, which gives us a reluctant Superman and Wonder Woman. Whether she can fly or not, Kara Danvers is a hero.

The dialogue was not as super. There were moments where Kara utters the words (and I’m paraphrasing), I’d be a hero with or without powers. That wasn’t on the nose dialogue, that was up the audience’s nose. You will absorb who Kara Danvers is, even if we must cram it in your head. But Supergirl—like most CW superhero shows—typically has spot on dialogue, so I’ll say again, the message is the right one for Supergirl. The show knows Kara.

I still don’t like Jimmy Olsen as a superhero. Fortunately, we aren’t subjected to a lot of the Guardian. It’s an also-ran plot line that does nothing for the show.

I do like how Supergirl has handled Alex and Maggie’s relationship up to this point, but “Supergirl Lives” dropped the ball a little. Alex and Maggie had a big spat that was turned into a smaller one; it was resolved too quickly for my taste. I’m not so sure Maggie would accept Alex with open arms after how she was treated, since she was concerned going into this relationship that Alex would act the way she acted this week. But I’ll give the writers a pass.

This week’s threat incorporated a lot of characters we’ve seen in the past, which was good, but it served to tie up some loose story threads and didn’t do a lot for the overall story arc. I’m not buying the aliens after Mon-El angle, but perhaps that’s because Supergirl hasn’t developed that angle as well as it could. I’m sure that’ll change in the next few weeks.

“Supergirl Lives” also uses the tired trope of a powerless Kryptonian subjected to red sunlight. It’s not bad, but I thought I should mention that it’s been done—a lot. Martian Manhunter couldn’t fly to Kara’s aid, because the planet had a toxic atmosphere to him and not to humans, which came off as another forced plot device. Again, I get why Supergirl did this, but it’s more than a little convenient. Or in this case purposefully inconvenient.

I know it sounds like I didn’t enjoy “Supergirl Lives,” but it was a solid episode if only for one thing: it shined a light on what makes Supergirl who she is. It can’t be overstated. Supergirl knows its main character, and it’s nice to see someone from the House of El portrayed like they’re from the House of El in a live-action show. Now if only the cinematic Kal-El will act more like Superman, we’d be set.